The Energy Catalyst is open to innovative businesses and researchers from any sector who can address the three major challenges facing the energy sector - the energy ‘trilemma' of:

reducing emissions

improving security of supply

reducing cost.

The energy trilemma is creating major global market opportunities for which the UK can develop and grow innovative businesses to deliver world-leading solutions. The objective of the Energy Catalyst is to accelerate UK business growth in this global challenge area by leveraging the best of UK innovation.

The Catalyst will support projects that contribute to all elements of the energy trilemma and funding will be available for three stages of technology development:

Organisations can apply for any stage of funding at any time, depending on where in the development cycle their technology sits.

Early-stage projects must be led by an SME either working alone or collaboratively or by a research organisation collaborating with a business. Mid-stage and late-stage projects must be business-led and collaborative. Total project costs can be up to £200k for early-stage awards, up to £1.5 million for mid-stage awards, and up to £10m for late-stage awards.

The competition is open from 30 April 2015. The deadline for registration for late-stage awards is noon 2 September 2015 and the deadline for expressions of interest is noon9 September 2015.

Please note that there will be a briefing by webinar on Wednesday, 20 May 2015 from 13.30-15.30 for those wishing to find out more about Round 3 of the Energy Catalyst. This will include information on the scope, funding and the application process.

Background

Energy underpins almost every aspect of our daily lives and yet it is invariably taken for granted. However, global legislation, domestic energy policies, regional supplier disputes and rising consumer costs means we cannot do so any more. Consistent policy, regulation, coordination and funding are needed to ensure innovative technologies can be developed and demonstrated effectively to help solve all elements of the energy ‘trilemma':

reducing emissions

Improving security of supply

reducing cost.

The energy trilemma is a global challenge creating market opportunites around the world for UK innovators. Within the UK alone, real opportunities to develop innovative new products and services are presented by domestic policy and legal requirements, such as:

the legally binding obligation that, in the UK, 15% of total energy must come from renewable sources by 2020 and the statutory requirement that UK greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 34% by 2020 and 80% by 2050 (based on 1990 levels)

the security of an estimated 85GW indigenous supply requirement in the UK by 2020

the need to provide affordable energy for all.

The energy sector is already a significant contributor to the UK economy. In 2012 UK energy industries contributed 3.5% of GDP (£55bn) and directly employed approximately 176,000 people. In addition, the global market opportunity is valued in trillions of pounds. The size of the market and the possibilities for innovation to address the trilemma are creating major opportunities for which the UK can develop and grow innovative, sustainable businesses and supply chains to deliver world-leading solutions.

The size of the challenge means that no one organisation can deliver an energy programme in isolation. A co-ordinated approach is needed that will allow publicly-funded innovation to be developed from a concept stage all the way through to pre-commercial demonstration. It is for these reasons that the Energy Catalyst has been established.

Scope

The Energy Catalyst will support businesses and researchers from any sector, who can deliver innovative solutions that contribute to all elements of the energy trilemma: reducing emissions, improving security of supply and reducing cost, when considered from a full ‘energy system' perspective, acknowledging that some solutions may be biased more to one or two of these elements

The Energy Catalyst will fund projects from early concept stage through to pre-commercial technology validation, based upon innovation that incorporates, for example:

new technologies

enhancement or alternative applications of existing technologies

development of components, sub-systems or systems

integrated whole-system approaches

enabling technologies for the energy system.

We are keen to attract proposals which bring new and innovative solutions and applications into the energy sector and its supply chain. In addition, we want to encourage the adoption and integration of cross-cutting, enabling technologies which are applicable across a range of sectors, for example, high-value manufacturing, advanced materials, sensors and information and communication technologies (ICT).

Indicative examples of technology areas that are within the scope of the Catalyst include, but are not limited to, those listed below:

carbon abatement: minimising environmental impact of fossil fuels and their associated applications to improve efficiency and reduce emissions. Includes carbon capture, transport, utilisation and storage for large-scale power and industrial CO2 emitters

energy networks and system integration: electricity and heat networks. Technologies for energy transmission, distribution and storage and the integration of systems to deploy low carbon energy. Includes smart grids, power electronics, storage technologies and waste heat

demand-side technologies: technology development to reduce and/or manage energy demand at scale. Includes energy efficiency measures for the end user including industrial energy efficiency

bio-energy (where already addressed by the Bioscience programme or the Industrial Biotechnology Catalyst).

the scale of funding requirements and timescales to commercialisation are unlikely to be addressed by a Catalyst (nuclear fusion, for example) except where early spin-out technologies for commercialisation in the energy sector are being targeted

there is no explicit technology component (the idea is for a new business process or market model, for example).

** Full details concerning technology challenge areas that are both in and outside the scope of the Energy Catalyst can be found in the guidance for applicants and should be read before applying.

Funding allocation and project details

Late-stage awards – Pre-commercial technology validation

These projects will demonstrate and evaluate the capability and performance of innovative technologies through pre-commercial technology validation including, for example, prototype and pilot testing and field trials at the component and system levels in realistic operating environments.

Key features

Two stage application process: expression of interest followed by applications from invited applicants

Must be business-led and collaborative

Research organisations can take part but not lead a proposal

Duration: up to 36 months

Total project costs: up to £10million

Total research partner costs: must not exceed 30% of total project costs

Business partner funding: up to 45% of their total project costs for Small/Micro SMEs, 35% for Medium SMEs or 25% for larger companies.

Application process

The competition opens for all stages on 30 April 2015.

Late-stage – Pre-commercial technology validation

These awards follow a two-stage application process.

Stage 1 - Applicants submit an expression of interest which is assessed.

Stage 2 – We invite selected applicants to submit an application.

The deadline for registration is noon2 September 2015 and the deadline for expressions of interest is noon9 September 2015*.

Note: All deadlines are at noon.

*Applicants for follow-on projects to previously-funded, completed and successful Energy Catalyst projects should also register and submit EoI application forms, but will be invited to submit a full-stage application. Applicants wishing to re-submit (and improve) a previously unsuccessful Energy Catalyst application should also register and submit an EoI using new Round 3 application forms.

As part of the application process all applicants are asked to submit a public description of the project. This should adequately describe the project but not disclose any information that may impact on intellectual property, is confidential or commercially sensitive.

The titles of successful projects, names of organisations, amounts awarded and the public description will be published once the decision to offer an award has been communicated to applicants by email. Information about unsuccessful project applications will remain confidential and will not be made public.

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